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The dynamic speed and scale of the unfolding crisis in Iraq have left many opinion-formers and policy-makers keen to catch up with events. British friends of Kurdistan have also been quick to rally to the cause.

Some might think this doesn't matter. Some may point out that thousands of pieces of law are made is this way every year. However, very few, if any, pieces of secondary legislation will have such far reaching consequences as the residence test for civil legal aid.

Rather than attempting to deceive the public, or try his hand at populist, personality politics what Ed Miliband must do is work with what he has. His principles, should he stick to them can be vote winners: Justice and a will to break down the ever growing social divides of inequality are more than just admirable; they are electable.

Legalising same-sex marriage was the recognition that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are of equal worth and have the right to equal treatment in law. The same principle of equality applies in the case of civil partnerships. Heterosexual couples should be able to have a civil partnership.

Because TED talks are so short, every sentence must count. The normal fillers, the waffle, the um's and the ah's all have to be erased. There's no time for them. The message has to be crystal clear, refined. Every single word that is uttered must add value...

It's great that some politicians have spoken out in an attempt to dispel some of the stigma around mental ill health, but it is deeply unethical to pretend to champion mental health care while simultaneously backing swingeing cuts to both the welfare safety blanket and NHS mental health services.

Whilst we still have the same old procession, all we'll get year on year is the same-old faces rehearsing the same-old processes with the same-old policies. I'm looking forward to a year when the most progressive thing about the #QueensSpeech isn't just that it is has its own hashtag.

Most people are voiceless because no one is letting them talk or listening to them when they do. There is a lot to be said for quitting being the voice of the voiceless and letting people speak for themselves. But not by those seeking to abolish the sex trade. Words are put into people's mouths when they can be, and when they can't, those people are silenced and dismissed.

We're asking the government to criminalise psychological abuse, coercive control and allow the police to take patterns of repeated abusive behaviour into account so that no one has to feel, like Claire: "I felt that I would never, ever be free. He controlled every aspect of my life, and left me terrified and feeling worthless and alone."

Voters from the 28 member nations of the European Union delivered an election earthquake on May 25. Results show major gains in the European Parliament for anti-integration, Euroskeptic parties which span the ideological spectrum from the extreme-right National Front which won the ballot in France, to the far-left Syriza Party which came first in Greece.

For far too long, the talk in Westminster has been only of the possibility of a majority government, against that of a coalition. Minority government is the elephant in the negotiating room. "All options are on the table," says one of the Labour leader's closest shadow cabinet allies. "We won't be bounced into a coalition."

As bad systems beget bad systems, good systems beget good systems - that's just the way it is. It is too late for the likes of poor Baby P, but we CAN seek to protect other children who are at risk by supporting MPs who promote this essential state-of-the-art, MIS-powered Super Hospital system model.

Last week I went to the launch of the All Party Parliamentary Group on mindfulness in the Houses of Parliament. The panelists included professionals in criminal justice, mental health, education, journalism, politics, four school children and (get this) me...

As Charlotte says herself, there's a very good reason for the delay and that's because she suffers from dyslexia, which makes reading paperwork difficult. But as a qualified coach, I believe the fact that Charlotte was prepared to put off the paperwork is a sign of her EXCELLENT sense of priority, NOT a sign of poor personal performance.